Wichita eagle., 1887-07-01
RAMBLEs ABOUT EUROPE.
From England to Egypt Especially for
thoEagle.
NO. VII.


to the tourist in commercial importance it
makes up in historical lore. AS the capital
city of Scotland it is the fountain head
from which emanated such wise measures
as eliminated in uniting the fortunes Of
Scotland in an indissoluble tie with those of
England. One of the first objecs that
strikes the eye in entering the city is that
superb monument erected 10 the memory
of Sir Walter Scott in 1914 at a cost of
$4,000. In the canopy is placed a marble
sta tue of the great novelist and poet, and a
stair 200 foet high conducts to the summit.
In the same vicinity are statues Of Living
stone Adam Black and Christopher North.
There are also monuments to Burns, Ram
sey, Hume, Dugald, Stewart, and others,
besides monument to Nelson, that towers
three hundred and fifty feet above the
level Of the sea. But everything else in
Edinburg, to the tourist, pales before the
grim castle into the very mouth of whose
guns could see from my chamber window.
Edinburgh castle is built upon precipi-
tous rock three hundred and eighty-three
feet above sea level. 1t is approached by
carriage in a circuitous way, and the
entrance is over the draw bridge, through
gates which have admitted to this fortress
which prior to the use of gunpowder was
considered impregnable-kings and queens
and has resounded to the tread of armed
men as far back as 1913, and / don't know
how long before that period. There is an
old gun here, twenty inches in the bore,
twelve to fifteen feet long, called Mons
Megs, a mammoth piece of ar
tillery made at Mons in Belgium
in 1916, coopered of thick iron bars hoped
together which, taken in connection with
its huge cannon balls cut of solid granite,
is quite curiosity to an old soldier. 1t
has evidently seen active service, and iudg-
ing from two foot rent near the breach, l
should say it had been a regular boomerang
and damaged its friends more than its foes.
We were shown many places in this fort
ress associated closely with the history Of
Scotland, which I will skip in this connec-
tion They show you through a glass case
the regalia of Scotland, consisting Of a
crown, sceptre sword of slate and Lord
Treasurer's rod of office, besides, if we be-
lieve their story, some remarkably fine jew
els. They also conduct you to Queen
Mary's room, where she gave birth to King
James vi, in whom the crowns of
England and Scotland were united
From this bedroom, of very small dimen-
sions, you look down a perpendicular de-
scent of solid rock full 200 feet, and they
will persuade you that the infant king
when only one week old, was let down
in basket secretly by a rope, on dark
night and taken to Sterling, some twenty
miles away, in order that he might be
baptised Catholic Leaving the castle we
passed down through the old town almost
every rod of which is historic ground. In
the middle of street stone is inserted
which marks the last resting place of John
Knox. This is near fine statue of Charles
II. inscribed j. X. 1872 The house where
John Knox, the great Scottish reformer,
resided and from whose balcony he preach
ed from 1860 until his death in 1912 is still
extant, Hollywood palace, the venerable
seat of Scottish royalty, is pointed out.
The palace was closed for some
reason so that we failed to get
a view of Queen Mary's apartments.
There are other historical events connected
with this ancient building of very great in
terest to the tourist, | am told, but OF
course we were barred. Queen Victoria
usually stops here enroute TO Balmoral, hel
summer resort and where she is now abid
, ing. Business of special importance call
ing me to London, l was under the neces
sity of cutting my Scottish tour short
, Much remains to be seen and hope before
, my return to America to again revisit
country so prolific in all that serves to in
q terest the tourist. The journey from
! Edinburgh to this city was accomplished
9 in about ten hours The passage of tn
Chevioh hills is somewhat monotonous
? reminding one much of the flint hills il
o Butler county. They are entirely destitute
: of timber, fit only for sheep pasturage
o with meagre population dependen
wholly for support, l should say
: on sheep husbandry. Passing from
}, these hills unto England we strike a coun
- try beautiful to the eye, teeming with pop
o ulation, the towns and cities large and gen
o orally close together The manufacturing
J, Interests seem to take the precedence 0
everything else This of course include
4 mining. We are now domiciled at th
!, Midland Grand hotel in London, with
), prospect of remaining here fol q mont
: or more. There is no city in the world, t
the English speaking race, SO pregnar
8 with historical events running bac
= through the ages even to the time Of Juliu
Caesar, and at the same time presenting
the tourist such broad field TO indulge a
+, APPETITE for general sight seeing, as thi
great city of London-great not only !
. population, but great in everything. II
6 a vast metropolis made up of small town
, with the intervening territory built up S
compaetlv as to make the Whole Thin